(Baltimore, MD) – NAACP leaders congratulated LaJune Montgomery Tabron, former Executive Vice President of Operations and Treasurer at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, for her appointment to President and CEO of the foundation, effective January 1, 2014.

“I have known LaJune for many years and consider her a friend,” stated NAACP Chairman Roslyn M. Brock. “She has been a mission-minded leader at the Kellogg Foundation for decades with a strong track record of international philanthropic leadership in strategic planning, fiscal accountability and championing change. It is also thrilling to see that the Board of Trustees selected the first female and African American to lead the foundation since it was founded in 1930.”

“LaJune Tabron is a powerful choice to lead the W.K. Kellogg Foundation,” stated NAACP President and CEO Benjamin Todd Jealous. “She has worked closely with the Association over the years as the Kellogg Foundation has made a sustained and substantial investment in the NAACP. She holds a strong vision of a racially just society where all children can flourish equally.”

“LaJune Tabron is an excellent choice for the Kellogg Foundation,” stated Mississippi NAACP State President and National Board Member Derrick Johnson. “Ms. Tabron has played a huge role in promoting a healthy environment for children in Mississippi."

The NAACP has a close relationship with the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, which supports children, families and communities as they strengthen and create conditions that propel vulnerable children to achieve success as individuals and as contributors to the larger community and society.

Tabron will become the 12th leader of the 83-year old foundation, replacing Sterling Speirn, who announced he is stepping down on December 31 after heading the foundation for nearly eight years.